Expert players are hiring out themselves -- for real money -- as virtual bodyguards in popular military shooters such as "Battlefield 3."

Article by: BRIAN CRECENTE Updated: February 6, 2012 - 9:12 AM

The classified ad read, "I will take bullets for you." And he did.

Londoner Toby Smith met me on a bluff overlooking the border between Iran and Turkmenistan on a recent afternoon armed with an M416 assault rifle. One minute and 15 seconds later, he was dead. He died the second time 3 minutes and 37 seconds after our meeting. His third death didn't come for an additional 5 minutes or so.

While the many deaths weren't real, the money that Smith charged for the protection was. The 15-year-old high school student is one of several gamers who have begun to hire out their services as virtual bodyguards, digital guns-for-hire in popular military first-person shooter video games.

I recently tracked down and hired two of these in-game bodyguards, teens who excel at "Battlefield 3" and advertise their services online, charging other gamers about $8 for a half-hour of in-game protection.

The services the two provided went far beyond just protecting me as I tried to kill other online players. They offered tips, revived and healed me when I was injured and brought me to their favorite in-game sniping spots, like hunting guides.

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